Ensuring the demographic resilience of the EU countries

Abstract

Demographic resilience reflects a countryʼs (or regionʼs) ability and capacity to ensure the quanti­tative and qualitative reproduction of demographic structures under specific historical, socio-economic, legal, and natural conditions. Demographic processes are of fundamental importance both for national development processes and for achieving global sustainable development goals. It is essential to systematically and thoroughly study the current demog­raphic reality, understand it well, and base rational and effective responses to ongoing demographic challenges on this understanding. The long-term consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, interna­tional conflicts, migration processes, and the mass wave of Ukrainian refugees to EU countries in 2022 have made the topic of researching demographic resilience more relevant. There is no single solution to respond to demographic challenges or fully compen­sate for the negative consequences of demographic changes. Therefore, it is necessary to implement and develop various adaptive measures and organizational-legal conditions to ensure demographic resilience. The research aims to justify and characterize the key organizational and legal conditions for ensuring demographic resilience in EU member countries. The theoretical and metho­dological basis of the research are scientific works of foreign and domestic scholars on the selected issue. General scientific and special methods are used, such as theoretical generalization, systemic analysis, systematization, statistical analysis, grouping, and scientific abstraction. Based on the crite­rion of "social protection of the population," the key organizational and legal conditions for ensuring demographic resilience were identified as follows: quality and accessible healthcare, gender equality, a developed system of social programs and assistance, the implementation of family-friendly policies, and effective management of migrations and refugees. The development of organizational and legal condi­tions depends on effective state policy and a compre­hensive approach to solving this issue. Demographic resilience is one of the essential conditions for achieving sustainable economic development based on a balance between the qualifications of the workforce, their number, willingness, and ability not only to perform specific tasks but also to participate in their formulation and determine the paths to achieving the desired results. The analyzed organi­zational and legal conditions for ensuring demographic resilience not only affect the social stability of the integration group but also impact the pace of economic development.